The Grasshopper - Hall & Woodhouse, Poole

Frankie Neale • 28 January 2020

“Guests immediately go to those tables. They are nearly always full with far most guests sat or standing around the tables than we anticipated. More chairs on order!” Andy Thompson, Hall & Woodhouse Project Manager.

Hall & Woodhouse are a Dorset based independent family run brewery with an estate of over 200 pubs across the South serving cask ales, draught & bottled beers from their award winning Badger beer range.


With a strong history of innovation in both beer and pubs, Hall & Woodhouse are always looking to try something new. Having discovered self-serve beer in bars in Europe, the company decided to pursue the opportunity within their estate.


Following extensive research into the options available, Hall & Woodhouse decided on Tabology for their self-serve beer trial at The Grasshopper pub in Poole.

Hall & Woodhouse, iPad Menu & self-serve beer tap on table

The addition of iPad Menus enabling customers to order food and drink as well as pour their own beer was seen as an added benefit and included in the trial.


Anticipated benefits from the system included higher sales with a low labour impact due to guests ordering and pouring themselves. However, the real purpose was to expand the guest experience and offer something new and quirky for guests to enjoy.


In January 2018 self-serve beer was launched in The Grasshopper with two self-serve tables of 3 taps each and iPad menus offering a selection of food & drink.


The response from guests was even better than expected, with Andy Thompson, (Hall & Woodhouse Project Manager) noting, “Guests immediately go to those tables. They are nearly always full with far more guests sat or standing around the tables than we anticipated. More chairs on order!”


Reviewing the figures on the use of the self-serve tables backed up Andy’s initial views and Hall & Woodhouse are now planning their next self-serve beer and iPad menu installations.

To find out more about iPad Menus, or Self-Serve Beer, and how they could work in your venue, get in touch.

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